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Seven Aspects To Consider When Assessing Whether New Tech Works For You

Technology is developing with ever-increasing speed. In just the last year alone, many new technologies and platforms have helped revolutionize the way in which businesses interact with their audiences.

Yet, entrepreneurs walk a fine line when it comes to bringing new technologies into a company. Just because a technology is being embraced as the latest and greatest thing doesn’t necessarily mean that it is right for your organization.

So how can an entrepreneur decide which technologies are worth integrating? To help, seven members of Forbes Technology Council discuss some of the crucial aspects to consider when deciding whether a new tech is right for your organization. Here's what they said:

1. Productivity

Don't always follow the crowd. Always examine whether a piece of technology is actually going to help your company be more productive. "FOMO" is not just a phenomenon in social media. It's rampant in companies when selecting new tech as well. Understand that sellers of technology are also in the business of making money. And what's best for your business may be at odds with the seller's pocketbook - Michael Brook, Pitchly

2. Simpler Designs

In my career, I've noticed that while technology continues to get more sophisticated, it rarely gets simpler. For us, we've started to change how we evaluate new technology, prioritizing advancements that take away complexity. We believe this shift will enable us to free up capacity to focus on what matters most and enable real innovation and execution. - Dan DeMers, Cinchy

For any technology to be right for our company it has to serve a purpose, improve workflows and collaboration, increase our market competitive advantage and come from an organization which can sustain its development and invests in improving it. - Walid Ayoub, Human Rights Watch

4. Value

I think the most crucial aspect when considering new tech is whether or not using that tech will provide value to the business. We also have to be careful not to dismiss all new tech just because it is new. The key is to be open-minded, curious and to put in the work to evaluate new tech against your project need to determine its potential value. - Daniel Shepherd, MindPoint Group

5. Benefits Vs. Uncertainties

Being in the Bay Area, we hear about and use tons of exciting cutting-edge technology every day. The key for us is first cutting out the marketing around the tech and analyzing the actual benefits it would bring us along with the costs and uncertainties around implementation. I know too many companies that implemented software around Big Data that don't actually have big data. Don't be them. - Eli Finkelshteyn, Constructor.io

Switching costs are often underappreciated. Regardless of the solution, there will be friction in terms of reduced productivity and potentially frustrated users. After evaluating a new solution, we often wait to implement it until periods of transition, like at the beginning of a new quarter or reporting period. Furthermore, we test extensively to ensure a more seamless deployment. - Niko Skievaski, Redox

7. Bottom Line, Readiness And Price

There are several key decisions an executive must make an assessing new technology and how it aligns with your business. Firstly, is the new technology something that can boost the company's bottom line significantly? Secondly, is the new technology ready for usage or is it still in testing mode? Thirdly, is it affordable and will it provide your company with a competitive advantage? - Swish Goswami, Trufan, Inc.